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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22950853">the sense of belonging</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiveLaughLovex/pseuds/LiveLaughLovex'>LiveLaughLovex</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>dare to dance [19]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Hawaii Five-0 (2010)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Gen, Post-Episode: s10e18 Nalowale I Ke 'Ehu O He Kai</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 11:28:51</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,026</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22950853</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiveLaughLovex/pseuds/LiveLaughLovex</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Her work had certainly gotten more interesting since she'd returned to Hawaii, but she'd found something upon returning back home that'd always been lacking while she was on the mainland. Here, surrounded by all these people that had become family, she finally felt like she belonged again. She wouldn't trade that feeling for anything. </p><p>(Post-s10e18. Kono spends her evening with the rest of the team at Rick's Bar.)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kono Kalakaua &amp; Steve McGarrett</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>dare to dance [19]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1507634</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>the sense of belonging</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Acceptance is the sense of belonging. - Unknown</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Well, look who finally decided to show up,” Danny greeted with a wide smile, drawing everyone else’s attention to Kono as she approached the table they’d claimed at the bar. “Guess you like us after all.”</p><p>“Ha, ha,” Kono muttered drily, though she offered him a fond smile as she claimed the empty chair next to Steve. “<em>Some</em> of us don’t wait until the last minute to wrap up our paperwork, Williams.”</p><p>“She’s got you there, buddy,” Steve remarked, sliding over the bottle of beer he’d ordered before she’d arrived. She smiled in thanks, popping off the top and taking a sip. “Glad you could make it.”</p><p>“Of course,” she said genuinely, glancing over to the dancefloor. Noelani was with the others, dancing and smiling like she hadn’t since her uncle’s death. “She looks like she’s doing okay.”</p><p>“Yeah, I think she’s going to be alright,” Steve agreed softly. “How about you? How’s your mom doing?”</p><p>“She’s okay,” she reported, taking another swallow of beer. “Her doctors think she’s getting better.”</p><p>“That’s good to hear,” Lou commented from the other side of the booth. “Give her our best, will you?”</p><p>“I will,” Kono promised warmly. “So,” she began a moment later, turning back to Steve. “How’re things going with Emma now that you’ve stood her up <em>twice</em>?”</p><p>“I didn’t stand her up twice,” Steve protested.</p><p>“Right, right,” Kono nodded slowly, “you just failed to call her back the last time. That’s <em>much</em> better.”</p><p>Steve let out a long-suffering sigh. “She understands that I’m a busy person. She’s a busy person, too.”</p><p>“And yet <em>she</em> was still ready for your date last night,” Danny pointed out, dodging the straw wrapper his partner tossed his way. “Hey! We live in a civilized society. You don’t just do that in a civilized society.”</p><p>“I’d argue you can’t really call it civilized,” Kono murmured, taking another sip from her beer bottle. “It’s not much of an accurate description these days.”</p><p>“Point,” Danny admitted, tossing the straw wrapper back at his friend. “You not going to join them out there, Kalakaua?”</p><p>“No, no, no,” Kono laughed, shaking her head. “I’d need to be about a thousand times drunker than I am right now for that to even be a possibility.”</p><p>“I’d say we could make that happen, but it’d probably kill your liver,” Danny remarked with a shrug.</p><p>“Oh, yes,” Kono agreed, amused. “Yes, it definitely would.”</p><p>“Hey!” Quinn greeted happily, returning to the table with Rick trailing closely behind her. “I didn’t see you come in.”</p><p>“You were a little distracted,” Kono pointed out humorously. “Hey, Rick. You two looked great out there. Not at all like you’d just come from a ’90s prom.”</p><p>“Thanks. I think. I’ll go grab everyone another round,” he offered, heading towards the bar and leaving Quinn smiling after him.</p><p>“Well,” Kono remarked, following her friend’s eyes, “I think it’s safe to say things are going well.”</p><p>“Eh,” Quinn shrugged, trying to downplay her genuine joy, “he’s all right.”</p><p>“Just all right?” Kono smirked when the other woman shot a scathing look her way. “Okay, fine, Quinn. Whatever you say.”</p><p>“Thank you,” Quinn huffed good-naturedly. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, there’s a lot of us at this table and he’s only got two hands, so I’m going to go see if he could use some help.”</p><p>“She does realize that’s what trays are for, right?” Steve muttered to Kono.</p><p>“She’s ignoring that,” she replied just as quietly.</p><p>“So, you think it’s safe to say she thinks he’s more than just all right?”</p><p>“Yes,” Kono laughed, shaking her head affectionately as she turned to meet her friend’s gaze. “I think it’s a pretty safe bet.”</p><p> </p><p>-o-</p><p> </p><p>“So,” Kono began as they walked out to the parking lot later that evening, about half an hour after the others had left, “how’s the headache?”</p><p>Steve scoffed, shaking his head. “Here’s some free advice for you, Kalakaua. Don’t get into a shootout while in a room filled with bags of a mysterious white substance. Or, if you do, try not to <em>shoot</em> them. I promise that your lungs and your head will thank you.”</p><p>“Oh, my lungs and head are already plenty thankful I wasn’t there when you decided to do that,” she replied wryly. “Also, just so you know; there was absolutely no chance of me finding myself in a situation even remotely <em>similar</em> to that before I came back here and took my old job back.”</p><p>“Aren’t you glad you did, though?” Steve questioned with a teasing smile.</p><p>“Yeah,” she replied genuinely, offering a smile of her own. “I am.”</p><p>His smile softened slightly, and he nodded once. “So am I.”</p><p>She glanced away for a moment, still smiling softly, then cleared her throat. “Do you think Mercury’s in retrograde or something?”</p><p>“I might, if I knew what that meant,” Steve admitted, amused.</p><p>“It’s what people say when a lot of crazy things happen at once,” she explained. “I’m sure there’s some actual philosophical element to it, but I’ve never bothered to look it up. It just sounds right.”</p><p>“If you say so,” Steve murmured, shaking his head with a fond smile as they reached her parked car. “Text me when you make it home,” he requested.</p><p>“I will. Same goes for you,” she returned as she unlocked the car and opened the driver’s side door.</p><p>“I will,” he echoed, waiting until she was in the car before speaking again. “See you tomorrow. Drive safe.”</p><p>“See you tomorrow,” she repeated, turning the key in the ignition and waving her hand as she carefully backed out. He waited until she was safely on the road before heading over to his truck and leaving the bar himself.</p><p>Kono drew in a deep breath as she turned onto the road that’d take her home, smiling slightly. Her work had certainly gotten more interesting since she'd returned to Hawaii, but she'd found something upon returning back home that'd always been lacking while she was on the mainland. Here, surrounded by all these people that had become family, she finally felt like she belonged again. She wouldn't trade that feeling for anything. </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Despite it being mentioned several times that the show might be coming to an end soon, I wasn't prepared to say goodbye just yet. I will relish these next few episodes, and I hope that, when we finally do have to bid these characters farewell, the actors and actresses who've portrayed them so brilliantly over the years will know how much we appreciate them and their work for giving us this show and these people who've meant so much to us.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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